Nightmares of a Good Man
by Zeng Li
Summary: A night of dreams that haunt Professor Tomoe.


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NIGHTMARES OF A GOOD MAN  
A Sailor Moon Fic

"Oh, doooctooor……!" a female voice trilled from down the corridor.

After a hard day in his secret lab, this was the last thing he wanted. "Hello Kaori Knight," he said as plain and dryly as he could.

Kaori narrowed her eyes. "Well, aren't we the one in the mood today."

Professor Tomoe waved his hand off at her. "I'm going to bed early tonight. Is Hotaru home?"

Kaori folded her arms with half a mind of playing stubborn. "She's in her room," she said almost involuntarily.

The professor walked away without a word. He strode lazily down the tall corridors of his enormous house to get to Hotaru's room. The blue walls of the room reminded him of the sky just after sunset. Numerous soft white lamps lit up all over reminded him of the fireflies she was named after. Asleep on the bed was Hotaru.

The doctor felt softness in his heart when he looked upon her sleeping form. It was a radical change from the way his blood burned when he was in the evil laboratory. He sat down lightly beside her, and she began to stir.

"My darling, Hotaru," he said softly, intoxicated by his immense love for her. A love so strong he had given his soul to an evil demon simply to revive her from death. His hand stroked her black hair, bringing her out of her slumber.

Hotaru opened her dark violet eyes. Sleepy and weak, the frail girl seemed not to react to him.

"My sweet…sweet Hotaru," he spoke slowly and quietly.

Hotaru relaxed and gave the faintest of smiles. The light from the soft lamps all around reflected bright white off of the lenses of his glasses. He lowered his head a little, and the reflections changed, revealing the colors of his left eye.

"Hi, Daddy," she muttered weakly.

"Rest, honey… All is well…"

= = = =

He was alone in the big room. It was quiet, dark, and cold. The demons in his head never let him enjoy the quiet, as they spoke over it. He usually fell asleep from exhaustion after mentally fighting with the voices and the feelings that he'd never felt before Hotaru died.

Souichi Tomoe pulled the covers up closer and tried to sink into the pillows, hoping to silence the storm. Why could Hotaru be at such peace while he was such a wreck. He tried to think about his daughter and his love for her. It would comfort him.

His glasses on the nightstand kept constant watch over him, it's two big eyes gleaming white against the darkness with the reflected moonlight filtering in through the windows.

= = = =

Professor Tomoe set up his telescope under the starry sky. Looking up at the heavens, he could identify every major constellation. There seemed to be more stars tonight than ever before. With a sense that he was forgetting something, he turned back towards the house.

He stopped suddenly, the bright orange glow of a sphere hovering over the rooftop. The professor blinked to clear his eyes, finally realizing that it was his glasses that he'd forgotten. The orange sphere was blurry, but he could make out a wide ring surrounding the orb's equator. _Why is Saturn here…?_ his mind wondered.

His feet just wouldn't take him to the back door. His eyes were transfixed on the watery image above his home. Finally, he turned away and back towards the telescope on its tripod on the lawn. There was the moon…hovering large and bright over his backyard.

He gasped, his heart jumping in his chest. Opening his eyes, he met the cruel gaze of his digital alarm clock displaying the current time.

"Quarter after one…" he muttered aloud as he awoke from sleep. His eyes were heavy and refused to stay open. Though he laid back down on the bed, he just couldn't get back to sleep fast enough, and the minutes ticked on.

= = = =

"Daddy!" Hotaru called to him.

Dr. Tomoe smiled and looked across his back yard at the girl. He sat under the shade of the canopy covering the terrace, watching his precious young Hotaru.

"Daddy! Look! I'm all better!"

Tomoe breathed easier, glad to see his daughter energetic and playful. Something in his mind told him that her illnesses would someday cease.

"Oh, doooctooor……!!" a female voice called, and before he knew it, Mimete came bounding up to him.

"Uh……?"

But she clobbered him in a bear-hug, lovey emotion radiating from her. "Let's go swimming, Doctor!" she insisted.

"Uh, Mimete…" he pulled himself away from her. Looking back over his yard, the scenery had drastically changed.

Brown floodwaters crested into rapids as a swift swollen river rushed by. "Daddy, help!!" Hotaru cried out, but he couldn't see her.

"Hotaru!! Where are you!?" Souichi Tomoe called, his eyes scanning the floodwaters.

"Daddy!! Don't let me die!!"

Her cry stung him straight to the heart. He'd already let her die once, no way would he let it happen again. He stepped into the cold flood with bare feet, feeling the slippery rocks underneath. "Hotaru!!"

A wave knocked him into the muddy river and swept him in the current for several meters until he could grab hold of a tree limb. He looked up at the nearby bank where the tree was anchored. Next to the tree trunk was Hotaru.

"Daddy!?"

"Ugh…help me up, Hotaru!" He looked up at the terrified face of his daughter. She remained frozen in place, too scared and too weak to reach down and help her father.

The rapids seemed to get rougher, as if they were part of a monster catching prey. With a victim in its jaws, the water rushed to consume him and his tortured soul.

"Daddy!?"

Professor Tomoe woke up in the darkness, his skin clammy with sweat. He stayed very still, waiting to hear the voice of his precious Hotaru again. Was she calling to him?

He looked at the alarm clock. Three o'clock. He climbed out of bed, mindlessly snatching up his glasses. The halls were dark and silent as he made his way to his daughter's room. He pushed the door open slowly and peered in.

"Hotaru…!?" he said in a loud whisper upon seeing an empty bed.

His heart popped into his throat, and a surge of adrenaline pierced through his body. Where was his daughter, and was she calling out to him in reality like she was calling out in his dream?

"Hotaru…!?" he said a little bit louder, turning back to the hall way, ready to go on a search through the house. He bumped into Hotaru and sent her tumbling to the ground. "Hotaru!"

"Daddy…?" she asked shyly, struggling to gather herself up.

"Oh, Hotaru…!" he reached down and picked her up in his arms. "I'm so sorry…" The professor cuddled her close to his body.

"Daddy, is everything all right?"

"It is now," he rubbed his hand over her back then released her from his hold. "I just don't want to ever lose you."

Hotaru giggled lightly. "Oh, Daddy… Did you get up just to check on me?" They walked into her dimly lit room.

"It's nothing, sweetie. I just had a bad dream." He pulled the covers over her and kissed her before leaving.

"Good night, Daddy…"

He turned before lightly shutting the door, the white lights catching his glasses, illuminating the lenses in the ominous, creepy way.

= = = =

The building downtown was white painted brick, probably a century old and the survivor of several earthquakes. Minor fissures outlined cosmetic damage to the façade that had been repaired numerous times. The old hotel had been converted to apartments many years ago, but for some reason they had a few nightly rentals available.

Professor Tomoe carried his briefcase in one hand and held Hotaru's with the other as they left the building. Part of the foyer branched off to an adjacent building which was in some kind of stage of remodeling. The doctor was drawn to the alternative exit as a way of remaining out of sight as much as possible, even though no one would know the other side to him.

He found a light-haired man sitting on the concrete floor with his knees drawn up to his chest. He wore a tan leather jacket and very well-worn shoes. The professor let his daughter's hand go and bent down to get a closer look.

"Who are you?" he asked the man huddled up on the ground among rubble and broken chunks of concrete.

The pale face tilted up, a sickly redness around his eyes. As the man looked up, his thin-framed glasses flashed an all-white reflection. Then, Dr. Tomoe found himself face to face with his own twin, whose glasses had 2 regular clear lenses.

The real doctor stood up and took a step back. His twin also stood up, moving very slowly with signs of obvious fatigue.

"Oh! Daddy, this man needs help," said Hotaru, rushing to the man's side, holding one of his arms.

"Hotaru!?" the professor was a little hurt that his beloved daughter would run to the other man instead.

"It's not too late for him. He can be all right…"

"Don't forget the past…" the twin said hoarsely.

Then, it all started out as a howl. The rumbles intensified, and chunks of ceiling began to rain down. "We have to get out of here!" said Dr. Tomoe.

"Go, Daddy. I'll help this man," his daughter insisted.

"No! I can't leave you! I can't let you die again, not after all I've given for you…!" The building above rocked violently, the structure rapidly fragmenting.

"You must!" Hotaru said. "Go!!"

"No!! I will not leave you!!" Souichi Tomoe ran forward to grab Hotaru and the other man if he could, but his own daughter pushed him away with some force he'd never seen before. "NO…!!!"

Once outside, he could see the crumbling building give way. The walls cascaded straight down, and the structure piled up into a big heap, releasing a thick dust cloud as it hit bottom with Hotaru and the doctor's twin still inside.

Tomoe's body shook and his heart ripped apart inside his chest. "Hotaru…!!! Why didn't you let me save you…!?"

He fell to his knees, the hot sting of tears in his eyes. His sinuses flared up as he knew he could not control his tears. The collapse replayed over and over in his head, each time more painful than the last. The look in his daughter's eyes…a red glow and a tremendous force shortly thereafter that propelled him out of the building at the very last second. He'd saved her in the past…so, was this repayment on her part?

"Daddy, don't cry," a soft voice said above him.

Tomoe just curled into a tighter ball, his audible scream washing out the sounds of other things around him. No…he did not want to look up and see the remains of the building. He knew it would still be there. If only he could ignore it. If only he could go back in among the tons of concrete and pull Hotaru out alive and well.

"Daddy…"

A hand touched him. Startled, he looked up to the pretty face of his precious daughter.

"Hotaru!? You're alive!" he exclaimed, grabbing her into a tight hug but quickly letting up knowing that she was frail and weak. In return, she hugged him tighter. Surprised at her strength, he gave her a tighter squeeze then let her go.

His daughter, usually clad in all black, was dressed in the white and vibrant colors of the Sailor Scouts he'd encountered once before. She smiled at him as if to ask what he'd been so worried about.

Next to her was the ragged form of his twin. His former self? Before the possession that entered his body? Was it Hotaru's turn to save the real him?

= = = =

This time he woke up to the morning sun. His brow was moist with sweat, and his platinum hair was a haphazard array going in all directions. He grunted and stretched, determined not to go back to bed and continue the horrible night of dreams he had had.

He got up and made himself more presentable. He stepped into his light blue slippers and went out into the house.

Hotaru was already awake and in the kitchen where Kaori Knight was making breakfast and giving the girl a hard time about stupid things. Kaori spied the professor and greeted him.

"It's about time," she said to him.

"I…" he looked at his daughter, rather complacent despite Kaori's rudeness earlier. "I'll be right back."

Hotaru and Kaori looked at each other and shrugged.

Dr. Tomoe walked down the long hall towards the dead end. Pushing the innocent looking button to open the hidden door, the doctor then walked into the shadows of the laboratory. Out of habit, he slipped into his lab coat. At his terminal, he picked up the phone and rang Mimete.

"Good morning, Professor Tomoe!" she squealed, butterflies of infatuation fluttering in her chest.

"I'm taking the day off," Tomoe said plainly to the young witch.

"Huh?"

"I'm spending the day with someone very important to me. Don't do anything stupid while I'm gone."

"What!? Who? Me!?"

Dr. Tomoe hung up the phone without offering another word. He replaced his lab coat and exited the shadowy room. The walk back to the kitchen seemed so long, but there was a reward waiting for him there. No matter what demon possessed him, it could never overcome the power of his love.

****

THE END

© 2000, written by Vivian. Based on characters from the TV series, Sailor Moon, created by Naoko Takeuchi and Toei Animation.


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